Andyn Omanovic, an emerging entrepreneur and researcher at Empa, has recently been granted an Empa Entrepreneur Fellowship, marking a pivotal moment in his career journey.
Over the years, engineers at Empa have been dedicated to developing an innovative valve control system for combustion engines featuring electro-hydraulically actuated valves. This cutting-edge technology offers unparalleled flexibility in gas exchange, surpassing the limitations of traditional camshaft mechanisms.
In typical passenger vehicle operation, this advanced system has the potential to reduce fuel consumption in gasoline engines by up to 20%. Collaborating with a leading truck manufacturer, efforts are underway to explore its application in fuel-flexible engines for cargo vehicles.
Interestingly, this technology has opened doors to unexpected advancements in other fields. Leveraging his expertise, Andyn Omanovic, a former doctoral student at Empa, has been awarded an Entrepreneur Fellowship to drive the commercialization of a groundbreaking piston machine design equipped with this innovative control system.
Managing the commercialization process is etavalve GmbH, a spin-off of Empa and ETH Zurich co-founded by hydraulics specialist Wolfgang Schneider. The piston machine concept aims to optimize the utilization of waste heat from various industrial processes, such as those in the metal or cement sectors, by enhancing efficiency beyond existing turbine-based solutions.
According to Omanovic, the closed space formed by the cylinder and piston enables near-perfect compression and expansion processes, resulting in remarkably high energy yields. Waste heat is efficiently converted into mechanical power by the pistons, which is then harnessed to generate electricity. The flexible control of valves plays a pivotal role in enabling this innovative procedure.
While turbines excel in high-temperature environments and large power requirements, the piston machine proves more suitable for temperature ranges typical of irregularly generated waste heat, up to several megawatts of power. This makes it well-suited for applications in the 500º to 900º temperature range, where waste heat is often generated unpredictably.
The potential of this technology to revolutionize energy utilization and sustainability is significant, offering promising solutions to address complex challenges across various industries.